Coma
by Tawny Erif
Summary: This was really just a story I wrote when I had nothing better to do. I was listening to Girlfriend in a Coma by the Smiths, and this entire idea just popped up in my mind. All characters © Sonic Team.


"Sonic?" Tails asked his blue hedgehog companion. He squirmed uncomfortably in the starchy chair beside the hospital bed. Sonic opened his eyes slowly. Weariness hung over him as he painfully sat up, letting out a groan as a dull throb once again settled in on his body.

"Hi Tails," he replied hoarsely. His voice had sounded rough as sandpaper for the last few days.

"How are you?" Tails put his hand on the bed.

"Fine, besides the pain… though it has rather toned down," Sonic weakly smiled, and a raspy cough escaped his lips.

He looked up at Tails, who was trying to smile back, but concern had flooded all other emotions. Tails yawned, and Sonic noticed prominent bags under the fox's eyes.

"You can't stay here forever, you know. Why don't you go to the workshop and get some sleep?"

"I want to stay here, Sonic. I'd be feeling sick until you came out of the hospital," Tails said truthfully.

"How much sleep have you had in the past 24 hours? Have you been sitting here the whole time?" Sonic

asked, surprised at Tails' being so clingy. Lately he had been rather distant.

Until they had to overthrow Eggman again. He was planning to drop a large bomb on Station Square, therefore having a massive empty landscape to build his long dreamed of empire. Sonic had reluctantly allowed Amy to follow along, and gave her the second seat on the Tornado 2, leaving him to ride on the wing. Which was considerably more difficult since it wasn't the old biplane that Tails used to putt around in.

"I'd say I have had about three hours' sleep," Tails confessed sheepishly, waiting for Sonic to scold him. But Sonic didn't reply. His thoughts were reeling over the events leading him here.

They had safely made it to the Egg Carrier, though Sonic had been shaken up and nearly frozen. Eggman was prepared for their arrival, and Sonic instructed Tails to get back on the plane and distract the attackers while he went to the heart of the Carrier and disarm the bomb.

Sonic didn't remember much after that. He remembered Amy surprising him in the cargo where the bomb was kept. And then… Eggman. Tails was nearly shot down, Eggman threatened to blow him to bits. Sonic ran… Amy tried to follow. The bomb detonated on the Carrier. And he was here.

After the short silence Tails continued. "And I wasn't here the whole time. I visited with Knuckles when he came, but he didn't want to come in because you were sleeping."

Sonic turned to him, brought out of his thoughts and nodded.

"And," Tails said more quietly. "I sat with Amy for a while… hoping maybe something would happen."

Sonic felt his heart sink. "How is she doing?"

When Sonic had awoken in his bed, he had received news that Amy was in a coma. It was shocking to him, but what bothered him the most was that he wasn't able to see her.

There was a small pause before Tails replied. "Her vital signs are still persevering… but it's-"

"I know, it's serious," Sonic interrupted, resting his chin on his knees gloomily.

Tails was quiet for a long while.

"Do you think she'll pull through?" Sonic asked Tails.

Tails hung his head, bangs drooping in front of his face. "I don't know. It's impossible to tell at this point."

Sonic sighed. "Do you think that they would let me see her?"

"I don't think so. You're not supposed to walk for another week."

Sonic let out a careless "pfft". "Since when have I taken doctor's orders seriously?"

"Never," Tails stated, remembering the time when Sonic had tried running with crutches.

Sonic tenderly pulled back the thin wooly covers and the cheap silk sheets that had been covering him for nearly a week.

He winced as his feet touched the floor. Not that it hurt him terribly, but the floor was so… cold.

"Careful, Sonic," Tails said, but made no attempt to stop him.

"I'm fine-" Sonic began to say, but lost his balance and fell on the hard floor.

"Or not," Tails sighed, pulling his friend up.

After a half hour of learning to walk again, Sonic sat down, his legs throbbing. "I'll visit her tomorrow,"

Sonic sighed. "Good night."

He pulled the covers over him and rolled over.

"You know that it's only lunch time, right?" Tails asked.

Sonic rolled back over. "Are you serious?" he groaned.

"Yes."

"Ah whatever, just let me sleep," Sonic rolled back over.

"Okay Sonic… I'll probably be here when you wake up." Tails said, plopping down into another chair next to a wooden table in the corner.

Sonic slowly fell from reality to the soft sound of Tails scratching a pencil against paper.

Sonic's eyelids slowly opened. Light shone through the slightly crooked blinds on the window. He felt hot and sticky. He closed his eyes and turned over.

"Are you awake Sonic?" Tails' voice seemed to clang in his ears like a pair of cymbals.

He squinted in frustration, then sat up slowly.

"Tails, hi… again."

Tails' head was lifted from the wooden table, just resting on his folded elbows.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Did you?" Sonic retorted.

Tails shrugged. "Sure. I slept nearly as long as you did. It's around 10 AM."

Sonic raised his eyebrows. "I slept that long?" he said, disbelief in his raspy tone.

"Yes… I've only been awake about 20 minutes."

"Okay," Sonic said.

Both were quiet for a moment, then Sonic heard his stomach growling. His ears flattened and a bashful smile surfaced.

"Say, do you think I could have something to eat?" he asked Tails.

"Sure, I'll go get something."

"Wait, I wanna see if I can walk!" Sonic exclaimed, his voice cracking in the sudden increase of volume.

Before Tails could say anything, Sonic was successfully on his feet.

"Hey, I feel great!" Sonic smiled the largest he had in a long time.

"Don't wear yourself out though…" Tails said, slowly getting up.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's go get something to eat."

A few minutes later, Sonic and Tails returned with hot soup in their hands. Sonic sighed contentedly and ladled some into his mouth. It was watery, of course, but he realized he hadn't eaten in two days, so it was wonderful to get something into his system.

"You feeling good?" Tails asked him.

"Yeah…" Sonic said with a smile. Things were seeming to get much brighter- oh…

Sonic felt a horrible sick feeling in the pit of his stomach as he remembered Amy.

"Tails, have you seen Amy yet today?" he asked with obvious melancholy.

Tails felt the same jolt Sonic experienced and stopped eating with the spoon halfway to his lips.

"No, I haven't," he said quietly.

"Can I go see her?"

"Sure, if you want," Tails said.

Sonic put down his soup, no longer feeling much hunger. He never had lost hunger over something before, but he had the worst intuitive feeling in the back of his mind that this would end in the worse.

Sonic peeked around the heavy wooden door into the dimly lit room. All that could be heard was a steady beeping noise of the monitor that stood out in the darkness, giving a steady heart rate.

Sonic stepped into the room, not making a single bit of noise. He was in bare feet, but he felt the need to be extremely silent. He saw the light switch by the door, and impulsively reached out to it, but then held back.

There was an air to this room that made it seem… like it was in a permanent stalemate.

He looked over to the bed and there, sleeping deeply, unmoving, and barely breathing… was Amy. Her mouth was shut tight, and as solemn as Sonic had ever seen it. He felt his heart begin to ache. His mouth opened slightly from the shock and sadness that suddenly swept over him. He looked truly distressed. He stood looking weakly at Amy, and reached out to touch her.

Her hands were folded neatly on her chest. He reached, then hesitated… then he slowly let his hand set gently on hers.

A shiver ran up Sonic's spine, and he began to feel his eyes water. She was… lukewarm, it seemed. Still slightly alive. Still hope that she would make it. Sonic rubbed his eyes. He needed to get a hold of himself.

Nothing was written in stone yet. Why assume the worst?

He gripped her hand, and thought he saw her heart rate jump slightly. But he decided not to believe it.

Sonic sat up. The sun was shining bright in his eyes. It seemed like he'd been in this hospital bed forever… though it was only a month come tomorrow.

He would have gone home ever since he had gotten the strength in his legs back, but the doctors said he needed to recuperate for a few more weeks… doctors, sheesh. But of course, Sonic had to comply.

_Still, that's a long time_, Sonic thought to himself as he swung his legs off the edge of the springy mattress. Tails rushed into the room. He had been in and out of the hospital frequently, though it had been two days since his last visit.

"Sonic…" Tails said, his voice weak.

Sonic frowned. "What is it Tails?"

"Amy… she's…"

"AWAKE?" Sonic asked, eyes wide and a smile crossed his face.

"No…" Tails said very softly, and he hung his head. He put his hands over his face.

"Amy's… dying." Tails said, choking as he spoke.

Sonic almost seemed to feel like his heart did actually snap in two. His smile evaporated, replaced by a limp jaw. "W-what?" Sonic asked, hoping he had heard wrong.

"You know what I said…" Tails said, tears leaking through his fingers. "The doctors say… her vital signs are dropping… and she's… not going to make it."

Sonic slid onto the floor, anguish absorbing all of his strength. He didn't know if he wanted to stand up.

"H… how long does she have?" Sonic clutched some of the fur on his head.

"Hours. She probably won't make it through the day…" Tails tried to regain composure, but he was barely able to speak without heaving.

Sonic held his face in his hands, and took a huge, loud gulp of air.

"I called everyone… and they should be coming soon," Tails said, almost falling on the floor in the same defeated fashion as Sonic had.

"Can we still see her?" Sonic asked. It was almost painful for Tails to hear his voice, he had never seen Sonic so full of grief.

"Sure, if you want to… I don't know if I want to go in there again."

"Okay." Sonic sniffed, and slowly stood up. He felt like his legs had turned into molasses as he walked down the hall.

He finally stood in front of the room.

"Sonic, are you going in there?" A pink hedgehog startled him as she appeared from the corner of the hall, which ended only two doors down.

Sonic had been startled momentarily until his brain registered it was the nurse, Tanya. For these past few weeks she had been quite nice to him, bringing him food when he didn't feel up to walking and visiting with him when Tails' absence had left Sonic lonely.

"It's okay to go in, right Tanya?" he asked, hand straying towards the doorknob anyway.

"Sure. Just be very quiet…" she strode up to Sonic and carefully opened the door for him before he could do so.

Sonic felt depression sweep over him again as he glanced into the dark room, quiet and solemn. Soon to be empty.

Sonic breathed in heavily, trying to at least keep from crying until Tanya had left.

He felt her hand on his shoulder. "I… I'm sorry about all this, Sonic. I really feel for you," she said quietly.

Sonic stood, his hand resting on the doorframe. He felt like he was going to fall over.

Sonic sighed deeply, and closed his eyes.

"I… never thought this could happen. I never thought that… she could die. Some days I just could have strangled her… but you know I would hate anything to happen to her."

Tanya took her hand off of his shoulder. "We all know how much she meant to you, Sonic. This must be a blow."

"The thing that just…. kills me is…. I never told her how much I really valued her. I would never have considered dating her or anything along those lines like she wanted. But she was a friend. And I really am going to hate myself for never really telling her that. The last words I spoke to her, I can't remember. Were they bitter, or were they friendly? Why did we have to get into that fight about the stupid plane?"

"Sonic, you didn't know when her last day was going to be. You don't know what's going to happen tomorrow. Maybe there's some consolation in the fact that you'll see her again someday in the next life."

"If there is a next life," he said very gloomily, opening his eyes a little.

It was a while before Tanya replied. "That's a horribly depressing way to think," she said, tilting her head downward, lavender bangs covering her face. "Don't you believe in spirits, or at least that we have souls?"

"I don't know. I just know that… this can't be it."

"Then we go _somewhere_, right? And you can see her again there, right?"

"I don't know. I… I guess so."

Tanya stood there for a moment, watching Sonic's back waiting for him to move.

"You'd better go in," she said finally. "If you want some time alone with her. Tails called everyone and they should be here very soon."

"Okay," Sonic said, letting his hand slide down the smooth wood to his side. He walked in and shut the door very quietly behind him.

The beeping had slowed down considerably, Sonic noticed. He fixed his eyes on the rate wiggling across the rectangular screen, almost trying to will it to go back up.

He pulled up a chair quietly, and sat, looking at the pink hedgehog. Now looking at her she looked much more… gaunt, tired. Already more dead than alive.

"Amy?" Sonic asked, knowing there would be no reply.

"Can you hear me?" He felt absolutely ridiculous, but he felt he needed to tell her… even if she couldn't hear him.

He heard nothing but the steady beeping on the monitor. It was beginning to anger him. Reminding him the seconds were slipping away. Amy was growing more distant with every weak beat.

Sonic clutched the blankets. They were so cold. He felt so cold. He rested his head on the edge of the bed.

"I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry… and not just for being a jerk to you, but for never telling you how I really felt about you."

"You were a good kid. A good friend. Yes, rather clingy and annoying and sometimes hindering… but I knew you would grow out of it. I knew you would grow up someday."

He squinted his eyes shut, trying to hold back tears.

"I n-never thought…" his voice shook as he spoke. "That… t-that you would die. So early… like- like this," he took a deep breath. Then he let out a very small laugh. "S-sometimes, I'd wonder… I'd wonder what you would be l-like. When you g-grew up, if you'd still be the… Amy you a-are now."

"A-Amy. I have said that… I hate you. I've said I never want to be a-around you. But I… never meant it. I thought that I could… always take it back. I… guess I'm just stupid that… I never thought something like this could happen. I a-apologize. I'm so-sorry." Sonic released a rough sob.

"GOD, I'M SO SORRY!" he bawled. "I'm sorry…"

Tanya stepped out of the room, wringing her hands. Sonic stood up, eyes wide.

She avoided eye contact with him and took his hand. "I'm sorry Sonic," she said in a whisper. "There was nothing we could do," she continued. "She's at peace."

Sonic looked down, and let out a sob. Knuckles sat on the bench with his back turned, a twisted expression on his face. His eyes were moist, but no tears fell.

Tails rested a hand against the wall, tears streaming down his face silently.

Cream let out a loud, anguished cry as tears flowed from her eyes like a fountain. She clutched a sad Cheese and buried her face in Vanilla's dress. Vanilla was very solemn, crying soundlessly as she put her arms softly around her daughter.

"You can go see her if you really want to, though make it very quick," Tanya whispered.

"Okay," Sonic said, wiping his eyes. He wanted to see her… one last time, before the funeral.

He slowly opened the door and glanced back at the others to see if they would come, but no one made any gesture to get up or follow.

He stepped in silently and respectfully avoided the two doctors in the corner, filling out paperwork.

Amy looked so… empty. Like nothing was there, almost like she had shrunken in size or something inside her had left her.

Sonic once again put his hand on hers. It was so cold. Like ice.

Sonic clutched her cold hand. She was so limp.

Just so dead.

He let go of her hand, his blood running cold. This was so unreal. Something that could be from a dream.

Sonic stepped back from the room, he admitted to himself seeing her like this was extremely creepy.

He went out into the light, where everyone was still deathly silent.

Sonic sat down beside Tails and put his arm around him.

"What does she look like?" Tails asked, wiping his eyes. His entire face seemed to be wet, he was so soaked with tears. Sonic looked at the floor pensively.

"She looks so… empty."

"That's because her soul left her," Knuckles stated quietly, but not turning around.

"How do you know?" Sonic turned to the echidna with furrowed eyebrows.

"I felt her presence just disappear. It's a very curious thing, witnessing a passing," he replied.

"Well Knuckles, not all of us have supernatural meditating powers," Sonic retorted sourly.

"You don't need any kind of 'supernatural meditating power' to feel someone's soul," Knuckles replied calmly, who seemed to be half in reality. Normally he would have jumped on Sonic for making such a snappy remark.

Sonic was silent for a moment, listening to Cream's muffled sobs, absorbing the setting of everyone and everything around him.

Then he spoke, a question arising in his mind. If anyone knew the answer, it would probably be Knuckles.

"Knuckles… where do we go when we die?" he was surprised at his tone; he had sounded like a child.

Everyone's eyes fell to Knuckles. This would definitely be worth hearing his opinion on. Even Tanya's ears perked up.

"To be truthful Sonic…" Knuckles said, still not opening his eyes. "I do not know exactly _where_ we go. I don't know if there's any god, any heaven or hell, but I know for a fact that our souls go to a place beyond the reaches of reality, not any other dimension or something of the sort, but some unreachable plane. But other than that, I don't know what it's like, or if there's some greater power conducting it, or if it's divided into a good and a bad, or light and dark. And that's all I can safely assume."

Everyone was silent as Knuckles stopped talking, but everyone could tell it was making Knuckles think just as hard as they were.

"That was… really insightful, Knuckles," Tails said throatily after a while.

Sonic stood up. This day had been just too much. He began to walk away.

"Where are you going, Sonic?" Tails asked the blue hedgehog.

"I don't know, I just need to be alone for a while," he replied flatly, and he left them in a brisk trot.

Sonic left the hospital for the first time since he had been put in. It was nice to breathe fresh air and not the unnatural cold air in the hospital.

In any case other than this, he would have smiled. The sun was shining brightly, the city was bustling with people's purposeful strides, cars driving by on the busy streets, people could be heard having a wonderful time on the beach, which was visible from where Sonic stood.

He felt so heavy. Like something inside of him was being weighed down. _His_ soul?

Why was everyone so… oblivious? Continuing with their lives. Everything passing by so quickly. Days, weeks, years, being lost to everyday life.

But the world should… be stopping. Amy died. Everything seemed so different, even though it was just the same city as before when Amy was still alive. But it would seem so empty without her.

But no one noticed. No one knew she had died… no one would have cared.

Sonic strode to the beach, and decided to try and run along the coastline. He hadn't run since he was put in the hospital, but the sunlight and fresh air gave him unexpected energy.

He burst along the low tide, salty air zooming past his face. The wind blew his fur back, he felt warm sand on his feet, and he felt alive again. He skidded to a halt and looked out at the lonely beach that stood ahead of him.

Station Square was silent yet vibrant from this long distance. Sonic hadn't realized he had run so far. He plopped down on the sand. He had forgotten how much he loved lying in warm sand, it was like a rather coarse blanket, but when it was warmed by the sun it was so comfortable.

Sonic looked at the sun, which he just noticed was setting in a magnificent array of orange… and lots of pink.

_Amy would have loved this_, he thought to himself. He closed his eyes as the sun's rays warmed his face, making his wet eyes feel dryer.

He rested his forearms on his knees, and his chin nestled between his arms. He looked out toward the sunset, suddenly feeling very peaceful.

"I think I'll be okay, Amy," he said very quietly, a tear running down his cheek.


End file.
